Alex McDermott

Colony collapse disorder describes a phenomenon whereby worker bees suddenly and inexplicably disappear from a hive. It has recently been identified as a syndrome following the rapid vanishing of Western honeybee colonies across North America and Europe. Justin Clemens also uses the term to describe an aesthetic collapse, whereby poets can only demonstrate their existence as ‘being caught dead’ given the fragile conditions of poetry and the inevitable, deadly effects of the past.

1. Intruders in the house. We are walking up a river. We walk quietly. No more social esteem and prestige. The river winds on. With my eyes closed I would lose consciousness pending further research. The river. We were walking …